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ICC CRICKET WORLD CUPJune 19, 2019Faf du PlessisBirmingham, England, UK New Zealand - 245/6 (48.3/49), South Africa - 241/6 (49) Q. Faf, just if you could talk us through your emotions. Obviously, very disappointed, we're all sure, and what your message to the players was in the minutes following the end of the game. FAF DU PLESSIS: Very disappointed. You know, it almost feels like two years ago against New Zealand again, where we actually played a good game of cricket. I can't fault the game that we played today. We threw everything at New Zealand, possibly 20 runs short, if you're really asking yourself, but it was a tough wicket. In the field and with the ball, the guys tried for 50 overs, and that's all I can ask for. There was a great intensity. Kane played a great knock, you know. It's probably the difference between the two sides, just one guy taking it through. The fact that we batted but got through a tough time getting our partnership together, then we lose a wicket, then we batted again and got the partnership together, so it was a lot of stop-start. With that, you lose out on 15, 20 runs, and that's what we were saying in the dressing room the whole time was trying to get to 260, 270. That would be a really good score. So we did feel like we were just a little bit under where we wanted to be but still runs on the board. If you bowl well, it will be a tough score. The message from me the whole time was just for the guys, the whole time, just to keep them in the game. Even though if someone batted well, played a few good shots, was just to keep the intensity in the field, and I can't fault that. I do believe we threw everything at them with the ball especially. So well played to Kane. I thought it was a really good knock, showing how to put innings together on a pitch that you need to decide when to push and when to hold back, and he picked his battles. He targeted a few overs in the game, and the rest he just ticked it off. So really good choice from him. Q. Faf, replay showed that nick on that ball off Immy's last over, the last ball that Imran, he celebrated, but Quinny didn't seem to move. Were you guys aware that he did nick it afterwards, and could that have been just the game? FAF DU PLESSIS: No, we weren't aware of it. I think I was at long on at the time, and Quinny is the closest to the action. He's always my go to man. Both the LBW shot -- I just thought it was a plain miss. I just heard about it now at the post match that he said he had a nick on it. But even Kane said he didn't know he had to fine tune it. He would have referred it. So you can't -- that's not where the game was won and lost. We had, I think, like I said, 20 runs short, and then we had one or two really, really tough half chances. If it was a perfect game, you know, we took that and Kane was out, the game would have been really tight. But for me, that's not the difference to today. Q. You said a lot about how well Kane played and the difference of 20 runs, but if you look at your batters and your side, is that what you've been asking for from your team from your senior players? Was that the example that your senior players could have provided? FAF DU PLESSIS: We've been saying, and we've been hard on ourselves in that as well. We need guys to stand up and put in performances that will win you games. That has been where we've been short in the innings we've played so far. The one with Quinny getting 60 or 70 the previous game is signs of that, but we still want more. We want guys to put in match performance runs, as he showed. That's why I use him as a reference, you need someone to go further, and we haven't had that. That's purely the finger pointing back at us as a batting unit. We did well in parts today. As I said, the wicket wasn't as flat as you would have thought it would be. Those first 15 overs felt exactly like Auckland. The ball was hooping around corners there. So we felt like we did the whole work, and we thought it would be easy, but they kept getting a wicket every time there was a 50 partnership, 60 partnership, and you need that to go to 100, and you need one guy to bat through the innings. Rassie did a little bit of that, but it was a 60 to 67. You need someone to get 100 plus, and that gives you that 15, 20 more runs that I speak of. Q. Faf, you mentioned Kane targeting certain bowlers really well. Do you feel that maybe in the middle overs they could have been more intense, against De Grandhomme center in the net, just making it easier at the end? FAF DU PLESSIS: Not really. Unfortunately today, it wasn't Andile's day. They scored freely off him, especially when he came back from the top end. There was a few more loose deliveries from him that you don't normally see. No, but we tried to attack the whole time when Colin came in. Immy was straight back on, and that's as much intent as you can show to try to get a wicket. Then I brought Chris and Kagi and Lungi back at different times. But having just five bowlers, he had to bowl ten today, and that meant that at times he would have to come back. Unfortunately, today was probably his first performance of the tournament where he hasn't been unbelievable for us, which is normal he's only human as well. But, yeah, I think -- I can't fault the bowling unit today. I thought they were brilliant, and they tried really hard. Five or ten runs in the field here and there and then 15 with the bat, I thought it would have been a winning title. Q. Sorry, I meant when you guys were batting. FAF DU PLESSIS: Oh, when we were batting? He's a tricky guy. If you see, like he was moving the ball around the whole time. So the guys really, really struggled. But I mean yes, the answer to that is of course. You want to try and -- as I said, individually you target a bowler that you think you can take down. So there was a period there where Colin was bowling with a spinner, where the spinner wasn't really, really spinning it that much. Perhaps there was an opportunity for us. You could see Aiden tried to take the ground at the moment he got out. The guys did try, and they found it really, really difficult with him especially because he was moving the ball laterally. Is that the right word? Laterally. Yeah, so the guys tried with that, but everyone's feedback was that he was the hardest guy to get away. But, yeah, you're right in saying there's possibly 10, 15 runs in the middle period there where there was a possibility of just trying to put a bit more intent, but even with that, I thought we set up our innings pretty well. That's normally where -- your last 10 overs, you get a little cameo of someone, and you get to 260, 270, and that would have been a good enough score on this wicket. Q. Faf, as we sit here, South Africa is still alive in this tournament. FAF DU PLESSIS: Are we? Q. Apparently. But from the bottom of your heart, does it feel like it's over? FAF DU PLESSIS: You know, it's tough now. Like you can feel in the dressing room the guys are hurting. I'm feeling five years older. My body is really sore after that. So we left everything out there, and that's all I can ask for as a captain, that the guys fought. They showed that. Unfortunately, we've just not been as good as the opposition that we've played against. New Zealand today was a little bit better than us. That's a skill thing. That's not a hunger thing. That's not a determination thing. That's not a fight thing. So I can't fault the team for that. Q. Faf, you said it felt like Auckland a bit four years ago against New Zealand. Four years previously, again New Zealand. What is it about this team that South Africa just can't get past? FAF DU PLESSIS: I think New Zealand is an excellent tournament team. If you look at statistically how they've played tournament cricket. When I talk about tournament cricket, it's probably ICC events. Their win ratio is up there with the best, the Indians and the Australians. They've always used the underdog tag, but they're certainly not an underdog this tournament. They're 4 from 4 at the moment, and I think it obviously helped them, in fact, that the ball was swinging. We know that New Zealand, if you play against them and the ball is swinging through the air, they're as good as any team. That's why they were so good in the previous World Cup when they played all their games at home. So when you play against a team like that, you're hoping that there's not too much swing because then you can target some of their bowlers, but they were, once again, excellent with the swinging ball today. They're a good all around team, and they've proven that for a long time now. Q. Faf, you've kind of touched on it a little bit, but just in terms of you keep saying we haven't been as good as the opposition that we've played. What do you think you can put that down to? Is it preparation in the lead-up? Is it the last four years? Just what is it? FAF DU PLESSIS: No, it's just pure numbers on the board. Batters getting the runs that they should. If you look at opposition, there's been big runs scored by batting lineups, you know. We've got a pretty youngish batting lineup if you take Rassie, Aiden, guys like that, even Andile to a degree. He's going really good at his cricket, but he's young in terms of putting innings together. So if you compare our battle lineup, especially our batting lineup to other lineups around the world, purely on a numbers point of view, that doesn't stack up with the rest of the world in terms of numbers. So we're not as experienced perhaps as other teams when it comes to that, but, yeah, the reason why I say not as good as other teams is we're just not producing scores or innings that can win you games. I think the bowling, they've been fighting this whole competition. Probably the Bangladesh game, we were a little bit off. And we need more runs. Q. Faf, England have spoken a lot about their kind of four-year plan and the cleanup that happened after 2015. Does South African cricket need something like that in terms of plans for 2023 starting immediately after this tournament and kind of picking players with a four-year plan in mind? FAF DU PLESSIS: I think that will happen naturally with quite a few guys at the end of their careers. So you're probably getting three or four guys getting away from that. And then you will. You know, depending on cricket South Africa, I feel in terms of what they believe is a good way forward, they might want a complete change. But those are things you sit down and talk about. For me, it's just finding -- we've got some young players, so there's a future there. The young guys, I've really backed them this tournament. I think they've got a great future ahead of them. Rassie has shown that he's the real deal. I think he's got leadership capabilities as well. He's standing up to be a strong man in a big tournament for us. Andile has done well as a young guy. Aiden, we know the kind of player he is. He showed signs today that he can do it. What will naturally happen is you'll probably lose six or seven players after this tournament. Whether you want to change more than that, no, I don't think you need to do more than that. Q. Faf, we know that you set quite high standards for yourself both in the field and with the batting. You came into the competition with good form. You must be disappointed that you didn't step up as far as runs are concerned. You got starts but didn't kick on. FAF DU PLESSIS: Definitely. Q. And just a message to the fans back home. FAF DU PLESSIS: Okay. Batting, I'm in the same category as the stuff that I've been saying. When I speak about putting your hand up and putting performances in, I don't point my finger anywhere. I point at us as a unit. Certainly, I need to be the leading run scorer in our batting unit with Quinny probably. That's been happening the last two seasons. I am feeling good, just a case of making those starts, turning them into scores. Today was a pretty good ball, but I know my big score is around the corner. I'm feeling good, hitting the ball nicely. But, yeah, I'm part of the guys not putting enough runs on the board. Sorry, second. This message to the fans is quite a tricky one, but the guys are fighting. That's all I can say. I know South African people are very passionate, and they're obviously probably a little bit angry at the moment, and rightly so. As a team, we take that on the chin. We're not pointing fingers anywhere else, but as I said, as a team, we're just not as good as other teams at the moment, and that's our mistake. So we take it on the chin. Q. Faf, in a tight game like this and in the World Cup, do you think that you miss a premier batsman, a world class batsman like Kane Williamson today or a Joe Root or a Virat Kohli, someone who can take the game away. FAF DU PLESSIS: Yeah, that's as I said. If you look at our batting unit, we've got some future talent and some promising players, but if you put our top six and you put the other top sixes around the world, purely on a numbers point of view, we won't be in the top three when it comes to that. So a lot of guys are starting their journey. So I mean, yes, obviously you can say you want more players with more experience and more runs, but it's not an option. Q. I'm sure what you'll tell your teammates, you'll try to console your teammates, but what do you do? We know you're a cool guy, but how do you sort of react? Do you get emotional? Or are you from Lance Klusener school, who said, no one died. It's just a game. How will the faces be in the hotel room tonight? FAF DU PLESSIS: Good question. I said that in regard to this tournament that, if you put everything out there and the better teams beat you, then life will go on. That's -- I don't hide away from the fact that I'm not disappointed. Obviously, I'm extremely disappointed. Cricket means a lot to me, and the performance of this team means a lot to me, but I certainly can't, if results don't go our way, you know, start running in the other direction. That's not my character. So I'll keep pushing forward and facing north, and hopefully that will be good for the team in ways, and it will be good for myself as well. FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports   |
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